Of Late Nights and Too Many Fights
by goingmywaydoll
Summary: In which Mary has an addiction to caffeinated drinks, Matthew is a poor university student with a dead-end girlfriend, Sybil is a rebellious teen with a boyfriend, and Anna is with an older man. Modern AU.


_Wow, a Downton multi-chap? Am I crazy? I've written some other Downton fics elsewhere but I thought I'd try my hand at a modern AU. So this is what came of it. I'm did an outline and everything. If I'm doing it, I'm doing it right. I know exactly where this was going and honestly I need some fluffy stuff to write after _**_SPOILERS_**_ Matthew's death (no, I'm not going to talk about it but I will say that I am heartbroken and can't stop crying every time a see them or read about them)_

_So here we go! Enjoy and I'd love to know your thoughts_

* * *

Mary Crawley's head was bent over her philosophy textbook. It was nearly three in the morning and her philosophy final was the next day. Or that day, she supposed. Craning her neck back to stretch, she sighed loudly. The main room of St Andrews' expansive library was completely empty but for her. A cup of now cool coffee sat in front of her large piles of notes. The librarians had told her ten minutes ago that if she wasn't gone in within the hour, she would kick her out. Mary had spat out a retort about being in her last year of university and returned to studying.

Blinking hard, she turned back to the page.

_For Kant, humans will never know things as they are in themselves because humans can never think without their brains and the brains are so structured as to provide for arrangements and ordering and connecting elements for human thought to occur. _

The words swam across the page. Mary shook her head and returned to the text.

_It is as if the humans must always see things through colored glasses because they cannot remove them._

"Excuse me?" a voice in front of her said. She could have sworn the librarian was a woman but the voice was distinctly male. Apparently, she was not alone in the library. She marked her page and looked up. The voice did belong to a male, in fact. He had blue eyes and blond hair. He was average height, she supposed, but he had an attractive air around him.

"What?" she said bitterly. The boy (man? He looked about her age) looked affronted at her tone. All she wanted was to return to her studying so she could go to bed at a nearly decent hour. Considering it was past three now, she figured she was long gone from a decent hour.

"You're studying for Hughes' philosophy midterm, right?" he asked.

"Why?" She narrowed her eyes at him.

"I'm in that class and I noticed the textbook wasn't on the shelf. You were the only person in the room, so I assumed it was you," he replied.

"I'm not giving it to you, if that's what you want," she snapped.

"Oh," he said simply. Evidently, that's what he wanted. He sighed, and walked away, leaving Mary to feel slightly guilty for rejecting him.

"Wait," she called out and he turned around. "It's late and I'm not getting any studying done. You can have it."

She closed the book and held it out to him. He raised an eyebrow.

"Really," she said, and held it out farther. He smiled gratefully and took it from her hands. "Although, it's nearly too late for you to be starting on studying."

"I just need to look up what year Immanuel Kant was born in," he said and it was Mary's turn to raise an eyebrow.

"1724," she answered. "And you don't exactly need a textbook for that."

"I also needed to know where," he added.

"Konigsberg," she answered again.

"Thank you," he said and Mary began to pack up her things.

"Are you going to tell me why you came over to ask me something you could have searched on the internet, then?" Mary asked.

"What?" he spluttered and Mary grinned.

"Please, I know you came over here for a reason," she said.

"I need the textbook!" he said indignantly.

"Of course you do."

"Really, I do."

"I believe you."

"Alright fine, someone asked me to get you to stop studying for 12 pounds," he admitted.

"Was she short with blond hair?" asked Mary. He nodded and she groaned dramatically. "That would be Anna, my roommate. Did she give you a reason?"

"No, just to get you out of the library," he replied

"Probably worried about me. She's not my mother, for god's sake!" she said, more to herself than to him. "Well, she succeeded. I'm going back to my apartment and you can get your 12 pounds."

She put the last notebook in her bag and slung it over her shoulder.

"Well, it was a valiant effort," she said to him, nodded and walked from the library.

"You never said your name!" he called after her.

"No, I didn't," she responded without looking back.

* * *

"Anna, you have got to stop paying people to get me to come home," Mary said as she walked into the door to their tiny apartment.

"This was the first time, honest," her roommate said, who was sitting on the couch with a mug of tea and her notes splayed on the coffee table.

"I'm not a child. And I _was_ studying!"

"I have no doubt you were. I just hired Matthew to get you home. The streets can be dangerous at night sometimes."

"I am perfectly capable of getting myself home," said Mary indignantly. _So his name was Matthew..._

"I'm sure you could karate chop anyone who came at you," said Anna and took a sip of her tea.

"Ooh, I'd love some warm tea," she said.

"I'm not your maid," said Anna and Mary rolled her eyes.

"Wish you were," she muttered and made her way into the kitchen to put on the kettle. "Any English breakfast?"

"Just bought a new box," called Anna from the living room.

"Oh, good, it's caffeinated," murmured Mary and dropped a bag into a mug. "What are you studying for?"

"Econ," she replied. "That's how I met Matthew. He's in my class and he's very bright. I thought you two would get along."

Mary didn't reply and Anna hid a smile.

"I don't know him very well but I thought you two could have an opposites attract kind of thing," pushed Anna. "He's pretty handsome."

"Didn't really notice." She poured some milk into her tea, added honey and walked back into the room.

"Here, test me," Anna said, handing her the packet of practice questions. Mary took it and scanned it quickly.

"What actions would increase the amount of cash on a firms balance sheet, other things held constant?" she read, then looked expectantly at Anna, who pondered the question for a moment.

"The company issues new common stock," she replied and Mary nodded. They continued on like that, testing and reviewing each other until it's 4:15 and it really was time to go to bed.

When Mary lay in bed that night, reviewing in her head the pros and cons of socialism versus capitalism, she couldn't help but think about Matthew from the library. He was perfectly normal (too normal if you asked her) and wasn't even that good to look at. Something about him kept pushing to the forefront of her mind and she hated it.

* * *

"You've got to be kidding me," she said when she walked up to her usual place in Professor Elsie Hughes' philosophy class. Matthew was sitting the seat, smiling up at her.

"Oh, the girl from the library," he said, remembering. Mary nodded, then fixed him with a pointed look that clearly said _Get out of my spot before I make you_.

"Oh, the boy from the library," she said, mimicking his voice. "If you don't mind, that's my seat."

"Is it? I thought I was sitting in it?" said Matthew cheekily.

"I _always_ sit here," she said, as if that explained everything. Most of the class was filing in and if he didn't get out of her spot soon, she would have trouble finding another.

"It's a seat," he said.

"It's mine."

"Can't you sit somewhere else?"

"Can't _you _sit somewhere else?"

"Alright, settle down," Professor Hughes said, walking over to her desk. The rest of the class was seated and Mary reluctantly took a seat next to Matthew. "You will have one booklet to complete the examination and two hours. Use your time wisely."

The exam wasn't nearly as hard as she thought it would be; there was no way she got below a 85. She glanced over at Matthew quickly. He had finished fifteen minutes ago and was reading _Great Expectations_, leaning back in his chair leisurely. She was reading over her work carefully and was positive she had done better than him. Time didn't matter to her, it was quality that was the most important. Making the last edit on the exam, she sat back, sighing in relief. It was her last mid-term of the week and she was excited to head to Newbury*, where her family owned a large estate. They spent every Christmas there. Mary was eager to see her family, who she hadn't seen since the summer. Massaging her neck to release the stress, she decided she was done with her exam and turned it in. There was still five minutes left to the allotted time, so she took out her very worn copy of _Pride and Prejudice_, determined to rival Matthew. He snuck a look at her and grinned, nodding towards the book. She smiled graciously and opened her book.

_More than once did Elizabeth, in her ramble within the park, unexpectedly meet Mr Darcy._

She made it through Chapter 10 before Professor Hughes called out, "Turn in your booklets now please."

She made a brief speech about teaching them that semester and bid them goodbye. Mary hurried out of the room.

"I saw you were reading _Pride and Prejudice_," Matthew said, catching up to her.

"I saw you were reading _Great Expectations_," she countered.

"You have good taste in books."

"As do you."

"Have you re-" But his question was interrupted when a petite redhead came running towards them, enveloping him in a hug.

"Oh, Matthew, the world relations midterm I just took was absolutely horrid," the girl said, sighing. "Professor Barnes put loads we didn't really learn on it. Did you just have philosophy?"

"Yes," he replied. "Lavinia, this is… Actually, I don't know your name."

"Mary," she replied, putting out her hand to shake. Lavinia shook it, smiling widely.

"You must think me so trivial for running up and immediately complaining about it. I apologize," said Lavinia. "How do you know Matthew?"

"I'm in Hughes' philosophy with him. I also met him at the library last night," she replied, exchanging a look with him.

"Oh, you're a late studier too, then? I kept telling him to get sleep before the test, but he wanted to be prepared. Came back at three in the morning. He woke me up too."

"I did apologize for that," said Matthew, blushing slightly.

"I forgive you, darling," Lavinia said and kissing him on the cheek. "How was the test, then?"

"Oh, it went well," answered Mary, looking from Matthew to Lavinia. They chatted for a little while longer but Mary soon grew sick of their mindless conversation. Something about Lavinia got under her skin. She was a perfectly nice girl but there was something Mary didn't like about her. _You're being judgmental _she told herself. Thankfully, Anna had chosen that moment to text her.

_John is coming over for dinner. You ok with that?_

Mary nearly groaned. John Bates was Anna's boyfriend and he was nearly ten years older than her. He and Anna had met a couple months ago, but since then he was the focus of Anna's mind. Mary greatly disapproved of their large age gap, something she made obvious to Anna.

_Fine_, was her only response. If John was coming for dinner, then Anna would want dinner to be perfect, which meant Mary should have been heading home.

"Oh, my friend's boyfriend is coming for dinner, and I really should help her with cooking," Mary said, trying to sound apologetic. Matthew's face fell slightly and Mary found this annoying.

"We'll let you go then," said Lavinia. "It was _so_ nice to meet you."

"It was a pleasure to meet you too," said Mary cordially and nodded to Matthew. She practically ran away from them after that.

* * *

"I'm home," she called into the apartment.

"In the kitchen," Anna called back. Mary shrugged off her coat and took off her book bag. Sighing, she prepared herself for what would greet her in the kitchen.

"Hello," said Mary cheerfully as she walked into the kitchen. She stopped short at the sight of John Bates grating cheese. "John, hello."

"Hi, Mary," he said politely and she exchanged a look with Anna.

Her friend ignored her and said, "We're making lasagna. That's why John is here early.

Mary nodded knowingly and asked if there was anything she could do to help. Anna said she could cut the cucumber for the salad and Mary set out on her task. She watched Anna and John's interactions. They navigated the kitchen easily together, passing each other utensils and ingredients with ease. You wouldn't have guessed they had been dating for only a month. Mary tried to find fault in their obvious comfort but found she couldn't. It wasn't that she didn't like John. She didn't like her friend possibly wasting her life with a much older man. She had no idea about his past life or what he had done. He could be married, or arrested or God knows what. She had never voiced these opinions to Anna, of course not, but they were getting serious and Mary wondered if she should intervene.

Anna kept sneaking Mary looks, which Mary pointedly ignored. She knew Anna wanted to be alone with John but she was not about to give her what she wanted. The rest of the afternoon went on like this, Anna nudging Mary often and Mary practically grilling John on his entire life. Unfortunately, he seemed perfectly fine. She would never admit it, but Mary found herself liking John and she could see he plainly adored Anna.

The night was nearing an end, the leftover lasagna growing cold and the romantic comedy they had chosen was rolling the credits. Mary and Anna were discussing the movie's many flaws while John watched amusedly.

"What did you think, John?" Mary asked, turning to him. He looked up, surprised.

"I'm a bloke, I'm not impartial," he replied and they laughed softly. "It's getting late. I should go soon."

"Already?" asked Anna.

"It's nearly one, Anna," said John. "I have a early day tomorrow."

Anna let him leave but not without kissing him goodbye. The moment he was out the door, she turned to Mary

"What did you think?" she asked eagerly.

"The movie? Mediocre at best," Mary responded and Anna rolled her eyes. "Of John? Oh, he was alright."

"_Mary._"

"He was nice and curteous." She shrugged.

"Tell me what you really think."

"I think it wouldn't be _too_ much of a problem if he continued coming over," said Mary carefully and Anna beamed.

"Oh, thank you, Mary. That means so much to me," she said. Mary smiled back at her and hoped she wouldn't regret her decision. It was when they were brushing their teeth that Mary realized accepting John was a bad idea.

"Did you know John knows Matthew and Lavinia?" Anna said after she spit out her toothpaste. Mary nearly spit her mouthwash out in surprise.

"_What?_"

"I thought it would so much fun to have them over for dinner. What do you think, Saturday?"

Mary was speechless.

"All right, I'll tell them Saturday."


End file.
